I applied to the study abroad program in Rome, not really knowing what to expect and not getting my hopes up too high just in case I didn’t get in. However, I found out at the beginning of 2018 that I was accepted to the program, and I didn’t really know how to process it at first! I was so excited, but also unsure about a lot of things - I wasn’t quite sure if my family and I were going to be able to afford it, whether the dates were going to work out with my summer plans, and what I should expect as a type one diabetic going abroad. I’m definitely a worrier. Immediately I began to think about what I would have to pack, and what it would be like handling my blood sugars in a different environment. I discussed everything with my family, and despite our nerves, we decided that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I couldn’t pass it up! So I packed up my suitcase with all of my clothes and toiletries and then I packed up another duffel bag full of my diabetes supplies which included test strips, about 25 insulin pumps (I have to change those every three days), insulin, syringes, a glucagon shot for emergencies, lots of juice and skittles for low blood sugars, and gluten free snacks (I also have Celiac disease so it was a little easier to bring some of my own snacks). I was so nervous about going through customs with lots of snacks and items with needles, but I didn’t have any problems at all!
The 10-hour plane ride was not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be! Sometimes being up in the air affects my blood sugars, making them drop a little faster than normal, but I didn’t have a single problem. Once we got to Rome, it was very easy to settle in to our new apartment. Something that was very different than life back home was the amount of walking we did each day. We would walk an average of 8-10 miles every day, which I really learned to love! Sometimes, light activity like walking can lower my blood sugars a little bit without any insulin, so at the start of the trip, I decreased my insulin dosage. However, my body soon began to get used to the walking and I returned to my regular insulin dosage. There were a few times when we walked long distances before meals, and my blood sugars would begin to drop slightly, but I always had a snack on me for times like those. During the full six weeks that I spent abroad, I never had any serious low blood sugars and I was so thankful! It made me realize that living life in a different country was not some crazy alternate universe - it was the same life I lived at home. I went to school, I went out to eat and explore with friends, I spent slow afternoons reading at coffee shops - everything was the same besides the amount of walking I was doing and the amount of carbs I was eating living in a city like Rome; but the spike from the carbs was balanced by the excessive walking. For example, at home if I ate a few slices of pizza, my blood sugar would shoot up pretty quickly. But in Rome, we walked to dinner, making my blood sugar a perfect level right before dinner, and then we’d take a long walk back home after, so my blood sugar stayed much steadier since I was moving my body.
Another thing that I was a little worried about was having Celiac disease and going to a city that was known for pizza, pasta, and bread! I thought I’d be living off of salads during my whole time abroad. I was very wrong about that! Nearly every restaurant we visited either had gluten-free pizza, pasta, or both. And it was some of the best food I’d ever had! So much of a city’s culture comes from its food, so I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to experience that element of Italian culture, but every restaurant I went to catered to my dietary restrictions and used the most careful procedures to ensure that my food was prepared in a contamination-free zone. I even found an amazing gluten-free caprese sandwich at a small cafe in Capri, a very small Italian city! After Rome, I went to Paris for a few days, and I experienced the same availability of gluten free foods, and the same care and concern used to prepare it. I was so pleasantly surprised by the consciousness of these dietary restrictions and health concerns in both European countries!
I look back on my six weeks abroad in Italy and France as the greatest time of my life so far. I felt incredibly independent and I loved learning about different cultures through their art, the structure of their cities, their beliefs, their people, and their food. Those six weeks abroad really taught me never to let my health issues get in the way of living my life. If I had let my fears and anxieties take over my thoughts when making my decision, I would have never experienced the joy, adventure, and independence that I found abroad. My study abroad trip has already helped me make other decisions throughout my life; whenever even the slightest fear about something going wrong with my diabetes or Celiac disease pops into my mind, I just remind myself that I spent six weeks in places I had never been before and in places where I didn’t speak the language! I not only made it out without any issues, but I grew so much from my experience. From it, I have developed a huge passion for travel, and I hope to continue to explore the world without letting my health issues to get in the way!
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Graphic Design major Nicole spent the summer 2018 term at our U of A Rome Center with the help of our Office of Study Abroad Scholarship..
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